The creation of the National Parks dates back to the 1903 donation of of land in the Lake District in the
Andes foothills by
Francisco Moreno, the renowned explorer and academic in
Argentina.{{cite web|url= http://www.parquesnacionales.gob.ar/institucional/historia-institucional/ In 1970 a new law established new categories of protection: National Parks, National Monuments, Educational Reserves, and Natural Reserves. Three national parks were designated in the 1970s. In 1980, another new law affirmed the status of national parks – this law is still in place. The 1980s saw the service reaching out to local communities and local government to help in the running and development of the national parks. Ten more national parks were created with local co-operation, sometimes at local instigation. In 2000,
Mburucuyá and
Copo National Parks were declared, and
El Leoncito natural reserve was upgraded to a national park. Currently, there are 41
protected areas in Argentina, which cover an area of or about 1.5% of the total land area in Argentina. == Map ==